13 Bites

by Alan Seeger (Editor), Lynne Cantwell, Alesha Carey

Offered for your reading pleasure: thirteen bites, thirteen snacks, if you will. Thirteen titillating tidbits of terror, treachery and trauma. Not all of them are frightening; one or two might even warm the cockles of your cold, stony heart.

“13 Bites” is a collection of short stories — thirteen of them, by ten different authors — with a slightly twisted bent. From aliens to zombies, from a gypsy curse to the mind of a murderer, from shapeshifters to witches to… well, you’ll just have to see, won’t you?

100 percent of the profits from this anthology go to benefit organizations that promote children’s literacy programs around the world.

Genres: Horror, Short Stories, Anthologies

193 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 13, 2013

About the author

Alan Seeger was born in San Francisco, California, in 1959 to two transplants from Missouri. He grew up in Denver and Oklahoma City, and spent ten years in the Ozark Mountains of Northwest Arkansas, as well as ten years on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota. He is now back in Northwest Arkansas.

Reviews

[Jeannie Holbrook · Rating 3 out of 5]

In 13 Bites there is a collection of 13 short stories by 10 different authors. For me they weren’t really frightening but they were interesting. Some were better than others, as it is in most collections of short stories. I liked a couple more than the others, one of those was Charlatan by Terry Schot. Jake has his future read by a physic for the next six years and finds out somethings are better off left unknown. In Nikolas’s Heart by Joseph Picard, Nikolas learns that things are not always what they seem and when you chose hate and revenge you often end up paying a high price. Baker’s Dozen by Jamie and Raechel Faulkner is delightfully dark and humorous tale
** As I have said many times before I don’t like Amazon’s rating system. This is a good book with dark interesting and sometimes creepy stories. I recommend for the those with a dark sense of humor.**

[Tabitha Ormiston-Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection of horror-themed stories does horrify, but doesn't gross you out. I'm not a fan of horror generally, and have to admit that I bought this simply because I know the editor and some of the contributing authors. That said, I didn't have to finish reading it, but I did, and in a single day too.

There's a wonderful range of stories, all dark, but none crossing the line into nightmare territory (for me, anyway). I'm not going to comment about individual stories, because I've already said that I know some of the authors, but I will say that I enjoyed them all, and a great deal more than I had expected to, not being a horror fan.

A point worth noting is that all of the proceeds from sale of this collection are being directed to charities for children's literacy programs. Another incentive to purchase the book, if sheer enjoyment were not enough.

[Sheila · Rating 4 out of 5]

Scary short stories fill this volume, but each has its own unique twist, making all of them memorable, intriguing and fun. My favorite is Terry Schott’s Charlatan, the tale of a scarily powerful stranger who gives what is asked but maybe not what was desired, and keeps the reader guessing. Lynne Cantwell’s The Only Way to Save You provides a truly haunting ending to the collection. And When is a Nursery Rhyme not a Nursery Rhyme, by Catherin L. Vickers, offers a solid anchor in the middle, cleverly blending the titles of familiar rhymes with a poodle, a witch, a rebellious daughter, and the fear of being followed. It’s a gruesome, awesome tale, part of a gruesome, awesome mix in these 13 bites, and it’s great Halloween fun.

Disclosure: I got lucky and bought it when it was free.

[Sheri · Rating 5 out of 5]

13 Bites by Carla Sarett

A collection of thirteen individual stories by different Authors. Most of the stories are thrillers, some are heartwarming. Each Author has their own style and I really enjoyed reading each one. Every story had a quality that I liked. I can't say too much more because i never do spoilers. All I can say is read 13 Bits, it is fast paced, original and fun!

[Lynne Cantwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Confession: I have two stories in this anthology, which was put together by a group of ten authors who met via Bookgoodies.com. But I have read all the stories -- even the ones I didn't write, lol -- and there's not a clunker in the bunch.

[Bittersweet BookReviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

13 Bites is a nice collection of short stories written by several authors. They each have their own writing style and a way to keep you interested. Just like anything I read I find that I liked some more than others. All of the authors did an amazing job with their stories. If you like quick reads and a little bit or dark humor, this is something you should check out. The best part about this book is that ALL (100%) of the profits go to organizations that promote children’s literacy programs around the world!